Are you a smartphone addict? If you’re reading this article by smartphone, don’t answer the question. It’s no surprise that many of us tech addicts are always online and on mobile, reading, tweeting, sharing, commenting, and laughing at others whose comments are better than even some of what Saturday Night Live gives us.
Within the last year, there have been some interesting developments. “Tweet seats” are on the rise in a few movie theaters worldwide, and every company under the sun now has a social media page (or 3, or 5…you get the point). In a world in which people have less time to eat a meal together, sit down and talk, or just sit around the room with family, we’re finding more and more time to play games, share media content, video chat, and text. Two people in the same room may find texting to be a better means of communication than verbal, face-to-face chat. If you’re a fan of some texting services such as SnapChat, you can now send texts and watch them disappear a short time after sending them – leaving no trace that you’ve ever communicated with anyone.
In steps the new Focus: Life Gear clothing line by Trident. The new clothing line, designed by Japanese designer Kunihiko Morinaga and sponsored by the collaboration of PARTY, AID-DCC, Trident, and Morinaga, seeks to rescue us smartphone addicts from our addiction by providing apparel that forces your smartphone to behave. Just place your smartphone in one of Morinaga’s jacket pockets while out and about, and listen to your phone go to voicemail instead of ringing constantly while you’re in the movie theater – disturbing your friends who have been dying all month to see that new hit movie. Morinaga’s clothing line will consist of jackets, shirts, pants, and skirts, as well as long coats for those who want to wrap themselves in warmth during the winter season. When wearing Focus Life Gear, your clothing will prevent the urge to grab your smartphone within seconds.
“Often [our phones] distract us from the things we really want to focus on like pursuing our goals, enjoying a moment with friends, appreciating the world around us,” Morinaga said. While our smartphones can help us pursue our goals (fitness, anyone?), enjoy moments with friends (for the selfie photographers at heart), and appreciate the world around us (photos of nature), smartphones should draw us closer together – not further apart. You need not worry about the Focus Life Gear line affecting your next text message or call anytime soon, but Morinaga’s line just may help smartphones become more of our “life companion” after all.
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